What I thought was going to be a princess/bodyguard romance was instead an installment in what is intended, it seems, to be an epic fantasy series about defeating an evil conquering emperor. The world building is really dense, and the characters feel flat. It was not for me.

I picked up the book expecting a classic fantasy quest and what I found surprised me. The story is big in scope, with gods, blights, empires and prophecy but the heart of it feels surprisingly intimate. This isn’t just a mission story. It is a story about people who keep going anyways, even when the world is falling apart.

The book’s strongest achievement is how it makes a sweeping fantasy world feel lived-in and personal. You are not watching from the outside; you are walking beside the characters, feeling the weight of their choices and the cost of their loyalty. Reyla and Tharin aren’t polished heroes. They are guards, trained to protect but still human, still scared, still wanting more than duty. Their bond feels real because it is built on shared danger and shared pain, not manufactured emotion. When the story lets them breathe, it is genuinely affecting.

The book isn’t perfect. The pacing can be uneven and there are moments when the story feels like sprinting through some scenes while lingering in others without a clear reason. The worldbuilding is vivid but also dense. There are many moving pieces and at times it feels like the book is juggling too much at once. I found myself wanting more quiet, grounding moments where the characters could just exist without the prophecy.

Even with those issues, the book’s emotional core holds. The characters don’t become flawless warriors overnight. They make mistakes, doubt themselves and keep going anyway. The story doesn’t romanticize suffering. It shows endurance as something quiet and messy, the kind that happens in daily decisions.

If you are looking for a character-driven story where every emotional beat lands with precision, yo might find yourself wanting more. For me, the book’s isn’t perfect was a solid, ambitious start, one that made me care, even if it didn’t always stick the landing and the plot got a little crowded. It is not flashy but it is honest, and that honesty is what lingers.

If you are looking for a fantasy with closed door spice, action/adventure focused, with some yearning, and mystery. This is your book! It is a sapphic novel with potential triggers of parental and spousal loss. Very much a D&D fitting book.
It's about 2 of the princess's guards who are reassigned to a hero's journey to, venture for the Hand of Miera, and find out what and who is causing the distress in the kingdom. An empire becomes strengthed on the side for a desert kingdom. This has some tragedy on both sides.
I at first had a hard time getting through the prologue. It felt very piled on with too much information at once. Was kind of confusing. Once I read from the first chapter and on I was then hooked! Had the hardest time putting it down and easiest time diving right back in. This is a great fantasy novel that leaves you wanting more. Kept me engaged and wanting to see what was next. It does leave you on a cliff hanger and lots of questions that are good. Not one ounce of confusion besides of the intentional unanswered questions.
A great book, definitley a 4 star read!